George e



(No Model.)

G. R. PIERCE.

PRUNING SHEARS.

N0.V36'7,843. Patented Aug. 9, 1887..

UNITED "STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE n. PIERCE, or KNOXVILLE, Tennessee, ASSIGNOR or TWO-THIBDS TO JOHN G. ,GUNN AND A. L. MAXWELL, BOTH or SAME PLACE.

PRUNlNG-SHEARS. I

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 367,843, dated August 9, 1887.

Serial No. 235,084. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE R. PIERCE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Knoxville, in the county of Knox and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Pruning-Shears, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to animproved form of pruning shears; and it consists "in a certain to novel construction and arrangement of parts,

fully set forth hereinafter, and specificall y pointed out in the claim.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side view of the shears in the open or oper- .'.5 ative position. Fig. 2 is a similar view of the same in a closed position. Fig. 3 is a detail section on the line at x of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar letters denote corresponding parts in all the figures, A designates the hooked jaw of my improvedshears, having the handle A formed, preferably, integrally therewith, and B is the knife or cutting-jaw of the shears, having the handle B. r

A B are projections or lugs on the upper sides of the jaws A B, respectively, provided with aligned openings and having a pivot pin or bolt, 0, secured therein. It will thus be seen that the jaws of the shears are pivoted to gether at a point outside of the direct lines thereof, and therefore as the jaws are closed together they will have a double motionnamely, the ordinary motion of the jaws or blades toward each other and a longitudinal motion caused by swinging around the eccentric'pivot. The combination of these two motions produces a very powerful cutting ability,

enabling the implement to sever branches,

which, with the ordinary directcut shears, is 4 impossible.

D is a post secured to the handle A, having a transverse opening, (7, therein, and G is a rod pivoted at one end to the rear side of the blade B at the point 9, and passing at the other end through the perforation or'opening d in the post.

A head, G, is formed on the said rod on the opposite side of the post, and a spiral spring,

H, is placed on the said rod between the rear end of the blade and the post, the function of which, as will be seen, is to hold the jaws separate-d.

To lock the jaws in the closed position, I place a small thumb screw, I, in the end of the post 1), to impinge, when screwed in, on 5; the side of the rod G, and thus lock the jaws in the desired position. It will be seen that if'the rod G is secured to the rear side of one of the jaws and the other end of the said rod is secured firmly in a post secured to the han- 6o dle of the other jaw the said jaws are held rigidly locked.

By forming my shears with the spring to open the jaws I add greatly to the effectiveness of the same, as the said shears are much 6 5 more easily operated, there being no necessity after each cut to open the same.

The draw out herein described is a great improvement over the ordinary direct cut in shears, and the means employed to produce the said out are extremely simple, and will be found eminently effective and durable.

Having now described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The pruning-shears having the jaws A B, and the spiral spring H, to normally hold said jaws separated, combined with the rod G, secured at one end to one of the jaws, and the screw I on the otherjaw, to bind the said rod 8c tolock the jaws in any desired position, substantially as and for the purpose herein set forth.

In testimony that I claimthe foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in 85 presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE R. PIERCE.

Witnesses: v

E. G. GATES, SAM House. 

